So I'm gonna start this new thing called "Random Stories from my life". (Hopefully I can keep up on it haha) Where every couple of weeks I write a blog about a random story/event that has happened in my life. I feel as though maybe it would help people get to know me? IDK haha...i could be mistaken lol. Regardless of that..sometimes stories are just fun to share!!
Anywho...lets get this started. This particular story is called "The Lobster"
It was Father's Day..1991...I was 6 years old. My family had just moved to San Antonio TX.....we were a military family and we moved around a lot. This was the first time we actually decided to celebrate Father's Day....we don't usually because my Grandpa died on Father's Day and my dad has always just never felt like celebrating it after that. However, this time was different because my dad had just gotten back from a TDY....I didn't get to see him that much from the ages of 5-13 because well...that's the way of a military brat. The active duty person sometimes get sent away for long periods of time :(. So we all decided to go to Ruth Chris Steak House. It was a bit pricey for us but we didn't care because dad was home!!
The wait was horrendous...I remember glaring at the other bored kids sitting on the bench in the waiting area and staring at the Lobster tank. The Lobsters all had those multi-colored rubber bands on their claws and were desperately trying to climb on one another to get out. After about 40 minutes we get seated...in the MIDDLE of the restaurant surrounded by other tables and booths....it was so loud you couldn't hear yourself think...let alone the person sitting next to you. But my dad sat next to me with a big smile on his face and said "What are you gonna get kiddo?". I stared and stared at the menu and pointed at the shrimp cocktail. I had had shrimp in the past and remember liking it. My dad laughed and said "Wow, ok, well that's just an appetizer and I'll share it with you, what do you want to eat?". I scoured the menu long and hard before deciding that I wanted a Lobster. My favorite restaurant was Red Lobster so I figured I'd be getting a tail like I did there. So I tug on my dads shirt and point at the Lobster. "Wow really? I'm surprised, but what my baby girl wants! You're growing up so fast!"
The shrimp cocktail came and my dad and I ate it up (my mom doesn't eat seafood). I remember it tasting like heaven, it was so good. Then the entrees started to come. I watched as the waiter delivered a juicy steak to my mom and dad....then they gave me my plate. It was an image that will forever be burned into my retinas. They placed the huge plate in from of me (mind you, it was 10$ per pound and the smallest lobster they had was 8 lbs)...the Lobster lay there lifeless, with his head, eyes, feet, claws, EVERYTHING attached. Tears weld up in my eyes and turned completely white (I'm already pale but I lost ALL color in my face). My mom looked at my dad and said "Oh god, she's gonna throw up".... The tears then just began to run down my face. My dad leaned in "What's the matter?" I just freaked out "Is this a lobster from the tank?! I didn't know they were going to kill it!" I couldn't handle the fact that a Lobster was killed for me. I felt horrible and seeing it lying there in full form just made it worse!
My mother rushed me out of the restaurant and into the car....they then both took turns watching me in the car while the other ate their dinner. I felt like I ruined Father's Day...however my dad wasn't mad at all. He got the Lobster wrapped up and we took it home. I didn't eat for about 3days after that and the day after the incident my dad attempted to re-heat the 80$ Lobster so he could eat it...and the power went out. So he ended up eating it cold.
From that day forward I have never eaten Lobster or seafood and will never again. I have a severe sensitivity to animal deaths. No, I am not a vegetarian because I realize I need to meat to survive but I can not see animals get killed in movies, tv shows...I can't stand animal suffering, it breaks my heart. So knowing that that Lobster could've been alive if it weren't for me...ruined my Father's Day in 1991!!!
The End
XoXo
Mara
Current set in MR - Desert Fox
